On Saturday, William & Mary students
had the opportunity to listen to other members of their “historically
innovative” university talk about ideas that are shaping the future.

One hundred people attended the TEDxCollegeofWilliam&Mary
event in Miller Hall, while more watched it through a streaming video feed in
the Sadler Center’s Commonwealth Auditorium. Organized by a committee of
faculty, staff, alumni and students with support from the Division of Student Affairs and in conjunction with
nonprofit group TED, the event featured an exhibit area, pre-recorded
presentations and live talks from William & Mary faculty, staff, students and
alumni.

“It’s really cool that they’re using
William & Mary students and professors for their talks,” said Shane
Frondelli ‘14, a volunteer for the event. “With the historic area, our
resources, and innovation, it’s really a perfect fit for us.”

TED, which stands for “Technology,
Entertainment, and Design,” is dedicated to promoting ideas that help shape or
change the world. Speakers with TED have ranged from Bill Gates to Jane
Goodall. The organization publishes the “TEDTalks” online and hosts two live
major events per year. The organization created TEDx as way for people to bring
a TED-like experience to local audiences.

The theme of TEDxWilliam&Mary was
“historically innovative,” a reference not only to W&M’s role in forming
and changing the way Americans think and have thought since the beginning of
America, but also how students and faculty of the university are changing the
world today.

“It’s a thing you can’t miss at this
college,” said Beverly Wang ’13, another volunteer. “It’s a really cool
opportunity.”

TEDxWilliam &Mary featured two
pre-recorded talks from previous TED speakers (Renny Gleeson and Aimee Mullens) and nine live speakers from William
& Mary.

Three speakers came from William & Mary’s
faculty. Tamara Sonn, professor of religious studies, discussed myths about religion,
while David Aday, professor of sociology and American studies, presented a talk
entitled, “Owning Change: Community, Knowledge, and
Development.” Michael Luchs, assistant professor of business, also spoke at the event,
focusing on how to think differently when designing college courses.

The university’s staff was also well represented at the event, with Christiana
Kallon '11, assistant dean of undergraduate admissions, discussing the
importance and societal benefits of educating women, and David Trichler,
director of operations at AidData, speaking on using the power of data to
do good in the world.

Current students and alumni also spoke at the event. Adam Stackhouse
‘06, owner and producer of AVAdventure Productions, discussed storytelling in
the digital world, and Bailey Thomson ‘10, director of leadership development
at EAdvance, talked about innovation in underserved communities. Undergraduate
student Pat Austria ’13 spoke about using crowdsourcing technology to change how lives are saved, and graduate
student Tim Pagano ’14 presented a talk entitled, “Respectful Inaction:
Expecting Less and Less of One Another.”

Carly Barnes ’15, a student who attended the
event, said that she just discovered TEDTalks this year.

“They’re a really cool idea, and I’m glad I got
to go see these talks,” she said.

“They really intrigue you,” Jake Todd ’14,
another student and audience member, added. “They have all sorts of different
speakers, experts, musicians, artists, scientists—just all kinds of people.
It’s cool that they got to integrate faculty and students in too.”

When asked to sum up the entire experience,
David Alperti ’13, a volunteer, said simply: “paradigm-smashing.”